Vehicle communication system with news subscription service

ABSTRACT

A vehicle communication system facilitates hands-free interaction with a mobile device in a vehicle or elsewhere. The invention also provides remote access to information such as existing news sources (i.e. existing RSS feeds) and supported websites. This also includes subscription to value-added services including: weather, custom alerts (i.e. stock price triggers), traffic conditions, personalized news, e-books (not limited to audio books, but any e-book), personalized audio feeds, and personalized image or video feeds for passengers. The system obtains, translates, and provides personalized news content in audible form within a vehicle without explicit user requests. An individual may set their preferences by selecting from a set of common sources of information, or by specifying custom search criteria. When new information is available and relevant to the individual&#39;s preferences, it is read out loud to the individual when appropriate. Appropriate instances can be specified by the individual using a combination of in-vehicle presence detection, time-of-day, and importance of the information relative to other personal events including email, phone calls, meetings and text messages.

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No.11/452,117 filed Jun. 13, 2006.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a system for managing and communicatinginformation while in a vehicle. More specifically, this inventionrelates to a system that integrates with a cell phone, PDA, or othermobile device to provide hands-free use of phone call, email, textmessaging, and other functionality of a mobile device.

Exchanging critical information using email, instant messaging, andother online media is essential to succeed in today's connectedlifestyles and business environments. We depend on constant connectivityfor important emails, timely updates, and to make sound decisions.Unfortunately, managing this online information on a mobile device orvisible screen can be extremely difficult and dangerous while driving.

In order to address these safety hazards, many states have enactedlegislation to restrict the use of cell phones and other mobile deviceswhile in the car. In light of this, hands-free devices for cell phoneshave become increasingly popular. However, many users are stilldistracted while trying to drive and operate their wireless devices.

An arrangement for safely managing and communicating a variety ofinformation while in a vehicle is needed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention addresses this need by providing a convenient and safehands-free interface to manage important online information whileenhancing the driving experience. Rather than awkwardly reaching for ahandheld device and looking away from the road to read a new email, thisinvention integrates seamlessly in a vehicle to read importantinformation out loud, directly to the driver. A voice-based interfaceprovides unified access to all communication needs while allowing thedriver to focus their attention on the road.

This invention provides a small device that wirelessly interactsdirectly with mobile devices and vehicle hands-free audio systems orheadsets and allows the driver to listen to and manage email, quicklyrespond to email over the phone, compose SMS messages, and answer andreturn phone calls. The driver can talk and listen to it, and remainfocused on driving and navigation of the vehicle. A built-in intelligentinformation manager automatically composes appropriate responses whileparsing and prioritizing incoming information to ensure that only themost important messages are heard first.

The invention also provides remote access to information such asexisting news sources (i.e. existing RSS feeds) and supported websites.This also includes subscription to value-added services including:weather, custom alerts (i.e. stock price triggers), traffic conditions,personalized news, e-books (not limited to audio books, but any e-book),personalized audio feeds, and personalized image or video feeds forpassengers. The system obtains, translates, and provides personalizednews content in audible form within a vehicle without explicit userrequests. An individual may set their preferences by selecting from aset of common sources of information, or by specifying custom searchcriteria. When new information is available and relevant to theindividual's preferences, it is read out loud to the individual whenappropriate. Appropriate instances can be specified by the individualusing a combination of in-vehicle presence detection, time-of-day, andimportance of the information relative to other personal eventsincluding email, phone calls, meetings and text messages.

Individual preferences are fine tuned using negative feedback asspecific stories and events are read out loud to the individual. Thisnegative feedback is used in combination with the individual's personalsearch criteria to refine the relevance of future personalized content.In addition to online news content, the individual may also select otheravailable online content, including stock market events and general websearch terms.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a communication system according to oneembodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 2 illustrates some of the components of the control unit of thecommunication system of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

A communication system 10 is shown in FIG. 1 as implemented in a vehicle8. The system 10 includes a device control unit 11 which is preferablymounted in a discreet location within the vehicle 8, such as under thedashboard, in the glove compartment, etc. The control unit 11 supportswireless communication via Bluetooth (IEEE 802.15.1) or any otherwireless standard to communicate wirelessly with a cell phone, PDA, orother mobile device 12. All data 13 is encrypted prior to transmission.The audio output of the control unit 11 is transmitted either wirelessly14 or through a direct, wired connection 15 to the vehicle's car stereo16. The audio input for the control unit 11 is obtained either through adirectly connected microphone 17, through an existing vehicle hands-freesystem, or wirelessly though a headset 18 connected to the mobile device12.

The control unit 11 connects to the vehicle's battery 19 for power. AnAC adapter is available for use at home or in the office. For portableuse in other vehicles, an optional “Y” or pass-through cable isavailable to plug into a cigarette lighter accessory socket for power.

The control unit 11 contains a recessed button 20 which enables thedriver to do the following: register new or replacement remotes; pairthe device with a new mobile device 12; and clear all preferences andreset the device to its factory default settings. The control unit 11also has a set of four status lights 21 which display the followinginformation: power and system health, vehicle connection status andactivity, mobile device connection status and activity, and informationaccess and general status.

In one example, the control unit 11 and the mobile device 12 recognizewhen the user, and the user's associated mobile device 12, are near to,or have entered the vehicle. This may be accomplished, for example, byBluetooth pairing of the device and the vehicle, or similar wirelesscommunication initiation protocols. Within this range, the handhelddevice 12 changes from its normal, self-contained operating mode, to animmersive communication mode, where it is operate through the controlunit 11. As will be described in more detail below, among other things,this mode enables the user to hear their emails played through thevehicle's sound system 16, or, alternatively, and if so equipped, playedthrough the sound system of the mobile device 12, e.g., headphones 18.Microphones 17 in the vehicle 8 or on the mobile device 12 detectuser-generated voice commands. Thus, the user is not required to changemodes on the mobile device 12; instead, the control unit 11 andassociated mobile device 12, recognize that the user is proximate thevehicle 8 and adjust the mode accordingly.

In addition to adjusting the mode based on vehicle proximity, the system10 may adjust between a public and a private mode. For instance, asexplained above, the system's immersive communication mode ordinarilyoccurs when the user is proximate the vehicle 8. The immersivecommunication mode may have a public setting and a private setting. Thepublic setting plays the emails over headphones 18 associated with themobile device 12. Such a setting prevents a user from disturbing otheroccupants of the vehicle 8. The private setting plays the emails overthe vehicle sound system 16, and is ordinarily used when the user is theonly occupant in the vehicle 8.

Of course, such system settings may be adjusted by the user and theirparticular preferences in their user profile. For example, the user mayprefer to switch to the immersive communication mode when the mobiledevice 12 and user are within a certain distance from the vehicle 8,whereas another user may switch modes only when the mobile device 12 anduser have entered the vehicle 8. Further, the user may want to operatethe control unit 11 and associated device 12 in a public mode, even ifother occupants are in the vehicle 8.

Similarly, the system 10 recognizes when the user leaves the vehicle 8and the mobile device 12 reverts to a self-contained (normal) mode. Themobile device 12 may also record the vehicle's location when the userleaves the vehicle 8 (based upon GPS or other information). Accordingly,the user can recall the vehicle position at a later time, either on thedevice or elsewhere on the system, which may aid the user in locatingthe vehicle 8.

The device has multiple USB ports 22. There are standard USB ports whichserve the following functions: to enable the driver to storepreferences, settings, and off-line memos and transcriptions on astandard USB flash drive; to permit future expansion, upgrades, andadd-on features; and to connect an Ethernet dongle for high-speedinternet access. In addition, the control unit 11 has a dual-purpose USB2.0 port which in addition to the features mentioned above, provides USB2.0 “on-the-go” functionality by directly connecting to the USB port ofa notebook computer with a standard cable (i.e. just like connecting aportable camera or GPS unit directly to a computer).

Other ports on the control unit 11 include an ⅛″ audio jack 23 toconnect to a car stereo without Bluetooth support, a ⅛″ microphone jack24 to support external high-quality microphones for hands-free calling,and a ⅛″ stereo headset jack 25 for use away from the vehicle or in avehicle without Bluetooth support.

The system 10 also includes an optional remote control 26 to interactwith the control unit 11. The remote control contains lithium batteries,similar to that of a remote keyless entry remote for a common vehicle.

In order to provide security and privacy, the device uses bothauthentication and encryption. Voice-based biometrics may also be usedto further enhance security.

The driver stores his or her settings for the device in their settingsprofile 30. This profile 30 may be stored in a database on an Internetserver 27. The control unit 11 utilizes the internet access provided bythe driver's mobile device 12 to download the driver's profile 30 viathe Internet. The control unit 11 also uses the pairing information fromthe mobile device 12 to retrieve the correct profile 30 from the server27. If the profile 30 has already been downloaded to the control unit11, the control unit 11 may just check for changes and updates on theserver 27. Each profile 30 on the server 27 contains a set of rules thatthe control unit 11 uses to make decisions on content delivery to thedriver. The driver can access and modify their profile 30 on theInternet server 27 through either the Internet using a web-basedinterface 28, or through a simple interface directly accessible from theassociated mobile device 12. Alternatively, the profile 30 is alwaysstored and modified on the control unit 11 only and can be accessed viathe mobile device 12 and/or via a USB connection to a laptop or desktopcomputer.

As shown in FIG. 2, the control unit 11 includes a text processingmodule 34, a vehicle communication module 36, a speech recognitionmodule 38, Bluetooth (or other wireless communication) modules 40, amobile device communication module 42, a text-to-speech module 44, auser interface module 46, and a remote device behavior controller 48.The control unit 11 has an email processing agent 50 that processesemail messages and determines the identity of the sender, whether themessage has an attachment, and if so what type of attachment, and thenextracts the body-text of the message. The control unit 11 alsodetermines if a message is a reminder, news, or just a regular emailmessage. The control unit 11 uses a data mining algorithm to determineif any parts of the email should be excluded (e.g. a lengthy signature).

Hands-Free Email

One feature of the system is hands-free email. Using the text-to-speechmodule 44, the control unit 11 can read email to the driver. When newemail arrives, the control unit 11 uses the profile 30 to guide anintelligent filtering and prioritization system which enables the driverto do the following: ensure that emails are filtered and read in orderof priority, limit the frequency of new email interruptions, sendautomatic replies without driver intervention, and forward certainemails to a third-party without interruption. In addition, prior tobeing read out loud, the control unit 11 processes emails to optimizeclarity. Part of that process involves detecting acronyms, symbols, andother more complex structures and ensuring that they can be easilyunderstood when read. The control unit 11 provides intelligent emailsummarization in order to reduce the time required to hear the importantcontent of email when read out loud.

The driver can interact with the control unit 11 using voice commands,including “go back” and “go forward,” to which the control unit 11responds by going back to the previous phrase or sentence or the nextphrase or sentence in the email respectively. In addition, speaking “goback, go back” would back up two phrases or sentences.

Additional hands-free email features include a time-saving filteringsystem which allows the driver to hear only the most important contentor meaning of an email. Another email-related feature is the ability todownload custom email parsers to add a new dimension to audible email,and to parse informal email styles (i.e. 18r, ttyl).

The hands-free email functionality includes content-rich notification.When providing notification of a new email, the control unit 11 providesa quick summary about the incoming email, enabling the driver toprioritize which messages are more important. Examples include “You havemail from Sally” (similar to a caller-ID for email), or “You have animportant meeting request from Cathy.” The control unit 11 looks up theknown contact names based upon the sender's email address in the user'saddress book on the mobile device 12. The control unit 11 uses knowncontact names to identify the parties of an email instead of justreading the cryptic email addresses out loud.

In addition to reading email, the control unit 11 also enables thedriver to compose responses. The driver can send a reply using existingtext or voice templates (i.e. “I'm in the car call me at ‘number,’” or“I'm in the car, I will reply as soon as I can”). New emails can also becreated and sent as a voice recording in the form of a .wav or .mp3file. The driver is also provided the option of calling the sender ofthe email on the phone using existing contact information in the addressbook, or responding to meeting requests and calendar updates (i.e.Outlook). Emails can also be created as freeform text responses bydictating the contents of the email. The device then translates thatinto text form for email transmission. An intelligent assistant will beimmediately available to suggest possible actions and to provide help asneeded. Again all of these options are prompted by verbal inquires bythe control unit 11 which can be selected by voice commands by thedriver.

The control unit 11 supports multiple email accounts, and email can becomposed from any existing account. Incoming email can also beintelligently handled and prioritized based upon account. Optionalin-vehicle email addresses on a custom domain are available. Emails sentfrom this address would include a notification that the email wascomposed while in transit. When composing an email to an in-vehicleemail address, the sender knows that the email will be read out loud ina vehicle. If the traditional email is “george@work.net,” then thein-vehicle address may be “george@driving.net.” Optional enhancedexisting email addresses are also available on supported email systems.For example, if the traditional email is “george@work.com,” an enhancedin-vehicle address of “george+driving@work.com” may be selected.

Enhanced Hands-Free Telephone Calls

Another feature of this invention is enhanced hands-free telephonecalls. This includes transparent use of any existing hands-free system.All incoming telephone calls can use either the existing vehiclehands-free system or a user headset 18. If an expected important emailarrives while the driver is on the phone, an “email-waiting” indicator(lights and/or subtle tones) will provide subtle notification withoutdisrupting the conversation. A headset 18 can be activated at any timefor privacy or to optimize clarity. The control unit 11 will seamlesslyswitch from the vehicle hands-free system to the private headset 18 forprivacy.

The control unit 11 also features enhanced caller-ID. The deviceannounces incoming calls by reading the caller name or number out loud(e.g. “This is a call from John Doe, do you want to answer it?”). Thiseliminates the need to look away from the road to find out who iscalling. Vehicle-aware screening can also automatically forward specificcalls to voicemail or to another number when driving, again based uponthe driver's profile. Normal forwarding rules will resume when leavingthe vehicle.

The control unit 11 also provides voice activated answering and calling.When the control unit 11 announces a telephone call, the driver canaccept the call using a voice command. The driver can use voice commandsassociated with either contacts in an address book or with spoken phonenumbers to place outgoing telephone calls (i.e. “Call Krista”).

Unified Information Management

Another feature of the present invention is that it provides unifiedinformation management. The control unit 11 provides a consistentinterface for seamless access to incoming and outgoing telephone calls,email, and other sources of information. The existing hands-freeinterface automatically switches between telephone calls, reading email,and providing important notifications. When entering the vehicle, thecontrol unit 11 automatically provides an enhanced voice-basedinterface, and when leaving the vehicle, the mobile device 12automatically resumes normal operation. Email reading can also be pausedto accept an incoming phone call, and can be resumed when the call iscomplete.

In addition, the driver can communicate with any contact through email,a phone call, or an SMS text message simply by speaking. The controlunit 11 provides enhanced information for incoming telephone calls. Thename and number, if available, are read out loud to ensure that thedriver knows the caller without looking away from the road. A nickname,or other information located in an address book, may also be used fornotification.

The driver can also reply to an email with a phone call. While readingan email, the driver can contact the sender by placing a telephone callwith address book information. When a phone call is made, but the lineis busy or no voicemail exists, the user is given the option of sendingan email to the same contact instead. This eliminates the need to waitand try calling the person again.

Within their profile 30, the driver can prioritize between email andphone calls, so that an important email will not be interrupted by aless important phone call. In addition, custom mp3 (or other format)ring tones can be associated with both incoming emails and telephonecalls. Ring tones can be customized by email from certain contacts,phone calls from certain contacts, or email about certain subjects.Custom “call waiting” audible indicators can be used when an importantemail arrives while on the phone, or when an important phone callarrives while reading or composing an email.

Enhanced Hands-Free Calendar

Another feature of the present invention is the enhanced hands-freecalendar wherein the control unit 11 utilizes the calendar functionalityof the user's mobile device 12. The control unit 11 reads the subjectand time of calendar reminders out loud, and the driver can accessadditional calendar information with voice commands if desired. Thedriver can also perform in-transit schedule management by reviewingscheduled appointments (including date, time, subject, location andnotes); accepting, declining, or forwarding meeting requests fromsupported systems (e.g. Outlook); scheduling meetings; and automaticallyannotating meetings with location information. The driver can also storelocation-based reminders, which will provide reminders the next time thevehicle is present in a specified geographical area, and automaticallyreceive information associated with nearby landmarks. In addition, thedriver could plan and resolve meeting issues by communicating directlywith other participants' location-aware devices.

Do Not Disturb

Another feature of the present invention is the “do not disturb”functionality. When passengers are present in the vehicle, the controlunit 11 can be temporarily silenced. Even when silent, the control unit11 will continue to intelligently handle incoming email, emailforwarding, providing automatic email replies, and processing email asdesired. A mute feature is also available.

Integrated Voice Memo Pad

Another feature of the present invention is the integrated voice memopad, which enables the driver to record thoughts and important ideaswhile driving so they will not be forgotten while parking or searchingfor a memo pad or device. Memos can be transferred via email to thedriver's inbox, or to any of the driver's contacts. Memos can also bewirelessly transferred to a computer desktop via the Bluetooth interfaceas the user arrives in the office, or transferred to a removable USBflash memory drive. Memos can also be annotated automatically usingadvanced context information including location, weather, and tripinformation. For example, “this memo was recorded at night in a trafficjam on the highway, halfway between the office and the manufacturingfacility.” Such augmented information can provide valuable cues whenreviewing memos.

Access to Diverse Information

Another feature of the example embodiment of the present invention isthe ability to access to diverse information. Information is availablein audible form (text-to-speech) from a wide range of sources. First,the control unit 11 provides access to personal connectivity and timemanagement information. This includes email (new and previously read),incoming caller name and number, SMS messages, MMS messages, telephonecall logs, address book, calendar and schedule, and instant messages.

Second, the control unit 11 provides multi-format support. This includesemail attachments that can be read out loud, including plain text, audioattachments (i.e. .wav, .mp3), HTML (i.e. encoded emails and web sites),plain text portions of Word and PowerPoint files, Adobe PortableDocument format (PDF), OpenDocument formats, and compressed and/orencoded attachments of the above formats (i.e. .zip).

Third, the device provides environment and location awareness. Thisincludes current location and navigation information, local weatherconditions, vehicle status, and relevant location-specific information(i.e. where is “work”, where is “home?”).

Fourth, the control unit 11 provides remote access to information. Thisincludes existing news sources (i.e. existing RSS feeds) and supportedwebsites. This also includes subscription to value-added servicesincluding: weather, custom alerts (i.e. stock price triggers), trafficconditions, personalized news, e-books (not limited to audio books, butany e-book), personalized audio feeds, and personalized image or videofeeds for passengers. The system obtains, translates, and providespersonalized news content in audible form within a vehicle withoutexplicit user requests. An individual may set their preferences byselecting from a set of common sources of information, or by specifyingcustom search criteria. When new information is available and relevantto the individual's preferences, it is read out loud to the individualwhen appropriate. Appropriate instances can be specified by theindividual using a combination of in-vehicle presence detection,time-of-day, and importance of the information relative to otherpersonal events including email, phone calls, meetings and textmessages.

Individual preferences are fine tuned using negative feedback asspecific stories and events are read out loud to the individual. Thisnegative feedback is used in combination with the individual's personalsearch criteria to refine the relevance of future personalized content.In addition to online news content, the individual may also select otheravailable online content, including stock market events and general websearch terms. Some examples of personalized content include:

-   -   Weather    -   Custom alerts (i.e. stock price triggers)    -   Traffic conditions    -   Personalized news    -   e-books (Not limited to audio-books, but any e-book)    -   Personalized audio feeds    -   Personalized image or video feeds for passengers

All text information is parsed and translated to optimizeintelligibility before being read out loud to the individual.

Notification rules can be set by the individual using any combination oftime interval, in-vehicle presence, and importance of the news event.With appropriate location aware hardware support, notification rules canalso include location based constraints. Desired news content can beselected using predefined templates or custom search terms.

User feedback is incorporated to maintain historical information aboutthe news events to which the individual listens, news events that areinterrupted, and news events to which the individual provides explicitfeedback. This information is used to help filter subsequent newsinformation and provide the user with more relevant news information thelonger they use the service.

To minimize the volume of wireless data transfer, all searching andselection of relevant content is performed using a server with a wireddata connection. Appropriate instances to present new information aredetected locally (within the vehicle). When an appropriate instanceoccurs, a short request is sent to trigger the transmission of the mostrecent personalized news information from the search server.

Personalization

Another feature in the example system 10 is extensive personalizationand customization for email handling, email notification, time-sensitiverules, vehicle-aware actions, text-to-speech preferences, and multipleuser support.

The email handling settings in the user's profile 30 allow the driver touse the control unit's 11 built-in intelligent email parsing andprocessing. This enables the driver to avoid receiving notification forevery trivial incoming email. Some of the intelligent parsing featuresinclude automatic replies, forwarding and prioritization based oncontent and sender, and substitution of difficult phrases (i.e. emailaddresses and web site URLs) with simple names and words. The driver canalso choose to hear only select information when a new email arrives(i.e. just the sender name, or the sender and subject, or a quicksummary). Email “ring tones” are also available for incoming emailsbased on sender or specific keywords. Prepared text or voice replies canbe used to send frequently used responses (i.e. “I'm in transit rightnow”). Some prepared quick-responses may be used to automaticallyforward an email to a pre-selected recipient such as an administrativeassistant. The driver can also set up both email address configurationand multiple email address rules (i.e. use “me@work.com” when replyingto emails sent to “me@work.com,” but use “me@mobile.com” when composingnew emails).

The driver can also customize notification. This includes prioritizingemails and phone calls based on caller or sender and subject (i.e. neverread emails from Ben out loud, or if an email arrives from George, itshould be read before others). The driver can also limit the amount ofnotifications received (i.e. set minimum time between notifications, ormaximum number of emails read in a short period of time).

Time-sensitive rules in the profile 30 may include options such as“don't both me in the morning,” or “only notify me about incoming emailbetween these hours.” The driver can also configure audible remindertypes based on calendar and scheduling items from the mobile device.Vehicle-aware actions are configurable based on the presence of the userin the vehicle. These actions include the content of automatic repliesand predefined destinations and rules to automatically forward specificemails to an administrative assistant or other individual. These alsoinclude actions to take when multiple Bluetooth enabled mobile devicesare present (i.e. switch to silent “do not disturb” mode, or take noaction).

The text-to-speech settings for the device are also configurable. Thisincludes speech characteristics such as speed, voice, and volume. Thevoice may be set to male or female, and may be set to speak a number oflanguages, including but not limited to US English, UK English, French,Spanish, German, Italian, Dutch, and Portuguese. A base set of languageswill be provided with the device, with alternate languages beingavailable in the future. The driver can set personal preferences forpronunciation of specific words, such as difficult contact names, andspecialized acronyms or symbols, such as “H₂0.” By default, mostacronyms are spelled out letter by letter (i.e. IMS, USB).

Information about specific words or phrases can be used to enhance bothspeech recognition performance and text-to-speech performance, and thisincludes context sensitive shortcuts. For example, nicknames should beexpanded into an email address if the driver is dictating an email. Inaddition, email addresses should be expanded to a common name whenfound. The driver can also set custom voice prompts or greetings.

The device also features multiple user support, wherein multiple peoplecan share the same device. The device automatically identifies eachperson by their mobile device 12, and maintains individual profiles 30for each driver.

Connectivity

The connectivity functionality of the control unit 11 enables it tofunction as a hands-free audio system. It interacts with supportedBluetooth hands-free devices, including but not limited to Bluetoothenabled vehicles (HS, HFP, and A2DP), after-market hands-free vehicleproducts, and supported headsets to provide privacy. For vehicles notcontaining Bluetooth or other wireless support, the control unit 11 canconnect directly to the vehicle's audio system 16 through a wiredconnection. Retrofit solutions will also be available for existingvehicles lacking wireless connectivity in the form of an optionalafter-market Bluetooth kit.

The system 10 may include a remote control 26 for accessing the controlunit 11. Emergency response support is available for direct assistancein emergencies, providing GPS location information if available. Thedriver could also use the control unit 11 through an advanced wirelessaudio/visual system, including such features as streaming music andproviding image content (i.e. PowerPoint, images attached in emails,slideshows). Integrated steering-wheel column buttons is also anavailable option.

The control unit 11 can also connect to a computer and external devices.This includes personal computers with Bluetooth to conveniently exchangeinformation over a personal area network (PAN). This also includes GPSdevices (with Bluetooth or other wireless or wired connectivity) forlocation awareness. This also includes storage devices (Bluetooth orother wireless or wired) for personal e-book libraries, or to manageoffline content with the unified hands-free interface. An optional cablewill be available for controlling an iPod or other music player withvoice commands. Through the device's USB ports, the driver can expandthe functionality of the device by attaching such items as a USBGPRS/EDGE/3G device for direct mobile access without a separate mobiledevice, or a USB WiFi for high-speed Internet access.

Upgradeability and Expansion

The driver may add future enhancements to the control unit 11 wirelesslyusing standard Bluetooth enabled devices. This includes support forwireless transfer with a desktop or notebook computer to transfer andsynchronize information. Advanced Bluetooth profile support (i.e. A2DP)for stereo and high quality audio is also available.

As mentioned previously, the control unit 11 will contain two USB ports.The standard USB port or ports will provide convenient access tostandard USB devices for storing preferences on a standard USB flashdrive; storing and moving off-line memos and transcriptions recorded bythe device; and future expansion, upgrades, and add-on features. Thedual-purpose USB 2.0 “On-The-Go” port or ports will provide both theaforementioned features to access USB devices, and also directconnections to a computer with a standard cable (i.e. just likeconnecting a digital camera or GPS unit directly to a computer).

In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes andjurisprudence, exemplary configurations described above are consideredto represent a preferred embodiment of the invention. However, it shouldbe noted that the invention can be practiced otherwise than asspecifically illustrated and described without departing from its spiritor scope.

1. A vehicle communication system comprising: a communication devicehaving data network access; and a control unit in a vehicle, the controlunit storing a profile associated with a user, the profile indicatingpreferences of the user regarding information desired by the user, thecontrol unit retrieving information via the communication device overthe data network based upon the profile, wherein the informationincludes publicly available text.
 2. The system of claim 1 wherein thecommunication device is a personal mobile communication device.
 3. Thesystem of claim 2 wherein the mobile communication device switches modesbased upon establishment of communication between the mobile device andthe control unit.
 4. The system of claim 3 wherein the informationfurther includes a plurality of emails and wherein the control unitconverts text in the plurality of emails to audible speech and plays theaudible speech in the vehicle, and wherein the control unit prioritizeswhether to play email versus whether to play publicly available textbased upon the profile.
 5. The system of claim 4 wherein the controlunit selects the profile based upon an identification of the mobiledevice associated with the profile.
 6. The system of claim 5 wherein thecontrol unit determines when to present the information to the userbased upon the user profile.
 7. The system of claim 6 wherein aplurality of profiles, including the profile, are stored on a serveraccessible via the internet and wherein the profile can be modified bythe user on the server via the internet, the control unit downloadingthe profile from the server via the data network access of the mobiledevice.
 8. A method for communicating in a vehicle including the stepsof: a) selecting information based upon a user profile; b) downloadingthe selected information into a vehicle; and c) converting text of theinformation to speech and audibly playing the speech for the user. 9.The method of claim 8 further including the step of determining whetherto perform said step c) based upon the user profile associated with themobile device.
 10. The method of claim 8 wherein the selectedinformation is publicly available on a wide area network.
 11. The methodof claim 10 wherein the selected information includes news.
 12. Themethod of claim 11 wherein the selected information includes weather.